| Affiliated baseball finally returned to the Albany area in 2002 with the arrival of the Tri-City Valley Cats. While the region has supported the independent Diamond Dogs at Heritage Park , it was clear that a new park was necessary in order to lure an affiliated team. Fortunately, they didn't just go and build a generic ballpark. Bruno Stadium does follow a similar template, but has enough differences to make it unique. First, the exterior is light brown in color, not the usual red brick. Secondly, the luxury boxes are not built directly over the concourse area as in most new parks. And lastly, every seat really is close to the field as there is no middle concourse and there are only about 15 rows of seating. The setting here is unspectacular as it's set on the campus of Hudson Valley Community College. There is currently berm seating in the right field corner and fans will probably be allowed on the grass berms in the outfield after grass takes root there. Concession stands lines the concourse on both sides of the field and feature a nice array of food items including Italian sausages, Philly cheese steaks, and Chicken Speidies (an upstate NY tradition). Concession prices are quite reasonable. Off the concourse behind home plate is a small gift store. Another positive is that the parking is plentiful and free. As for the atmosphere, while it was very relaxing the first couple years, has actually gotten more annoying. There are more sound effects and they have an Uncle Sam character who tries to act as a cheerleader. The team does have a mascot (Southpaw), but he is actually unobtrusive compared to Uncle Sam. I do have two other small complaints about Bruno Stadium. First, there is not enough covering in case of rain. The only area which is covered is the entranceway behind homeplate. My second complaint is the placement of the scoreboard. Because it is left field right next to the foul pole, it is quite difficult to see for fans sitting on the third base side. I have really enjoyed my visits to Bruno Stadium - the prices are very reasonable and the fans are into the game. It has instantly become one of my favorites.
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